Wednesday, January 31, 2018

2018 S.C. Naturalists Meeting - Focus on Congaree National Park

Map shows current river flow and past channels too

Founded in 1976

The membership of the South Carolina Association of Naturalists
(SCAN) comes from across the state to Columbia for their annual meeting each
January. During the remainder of the calendar year, these SCAN members will fan
out for field trips in every corner of the state, such as their December visit
to the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. The 2018 annual meeting featured a
pair of rangers from Congaree National Park to discuss the history surrounding
the old-growth hardwood forest there, and how the history birding is celebrated
there now.

Clemson Facility Map

President Gordon Murphy greeted the SCAN members at the Lake
House meeting facility at the Clemson Sandhills facility outside of Columbia.
New members were asked to stand and be recognized, and were presented with
published journals from 20 years of field trips. The format for the annual
meeting consisted of guest speakers, with a break for lunch when members could
get outside and explore the nearby walking trails around the lake area. The end
of the day includes a business meeting to elect new officers, followed by the
announcement of the 2018 field trip schedule.

Dr. David
Shelley is the Director at the old-growth bottomland forest research and
education center at Congaree National Park and he shared perspective on earth
system science using geology to illustrate the passage of time. “A kind of
prehistoric climate change helped to form the Congaree River floodplain as we
know it today,” said Shelley. “There is evidence that the river was once a
braided stream type of ecosystem, but that changed as Ice Age cycles came and
went, creating mega channels from increased melt flows in Spring. Eventually the
river narrows and as its course meanders over time, we are left with the rim
swamps and bottomlands we observe today.”

Thanks to Dr. Shelley for sharing his passion

To view the entire feature article in the newspaper click on Colletonian.